Nearly 1/3 of Beulah Fire lose family homes in ‘Aspen Acres’ fire
BEULAH, Colo. (KRDO) -- The Beulah Fire Protection and Ambulance District has confirmed the loss of 193 primary residences in the "Aspen Acres" fire.
That number is as of July 8.
According to a spokesperson for Beulah Fire, six of these homes belonged to the families of Beulah firefighters battling the flames. This includes five firefighters who personally lost their homes and two firefighters who lost their parents' homes.
One of these firefighters is Nathan Anderson. For 30 years, Anderson had watched his seven kids grow up in their home on Northcreek Road in Beulah.
His property sits next to his brother’s home and the Christian retreat center that their family runs.
→ Find the latest Aspen Acres fire information and evacuation maps here
Nathan grabbed his gear to head out the door after being called in at the start of the "Aspen Acres" fire on Monday, June 29. He told his wife not to worry, but they could already see the smoke from their home.
“I came out the door and saw it was very big already," Anderson said. "You could definitely see the smoke, so that’s when I knew that this was not going to be a good day.”
The next day, June 30, Anderson learned their home was gone.
He said it wasn't difficult to keep going. He knew it was his job to continue fighting for his community. Anderson and the other firefighters kept battling the blaze, even after learning their homes were gone.
“I don’t think in their minds there was ever a choice. They knew you just got to keep going because they needed to do what they could to save someone else from the same thing,” said Jill Laca, public information officer for Beulah Fire.
Though Anderson lost his own home, he was proud to defend several of his friends’ homes alongside Beulah Fire.
Nathan has been in the business for 18 years and said he has seen a lot alongside this group of Beulah firefighters that he calls a family.
“No one was saying, 'What could we have done differently?' because we all did exactly what we were supposed to do,” Anderson said.
Nathan said his family is staying positive. Their retreat center is still intact, and they are looking forward to rebuilding his and his brother’s homes.
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